What I Think Happened Next
by angelface3
Summary: After tragedies hit the gang, they try to pull it together and rekindle old flames
1. Tragedy With A Silver Lining

Tragedy had struck all four of them, but none had contacted the others yet. So they all sat in their respective homes staring out the window wishing for hope and happiness, and weighing their amounts of grief. Laverne, Shirley, Lenny, and Carmine were each facing their own personal losses, disappointments, and heartaches.   
  
Carmine Ragusa was in his apartment alone, dumbfounded. His roommate had left the night before with the announcement of an engagement. His thoughts turned to the play. He had just been kicked out of "Hare" due to cutbacks and irresponsibility, and now he couldn't find a new job. So he tried to be cheerful, and he ended up thinking about Shirley, and how he missed everything about the cheerful, hopeful girl. Sometimes, though he would never admit it, he wished that her husband would've never proposed, because he knew that he wanted her more than any other in the world. And he prayed that someday, she would be his for the keeping. He also thought about how he missed the entire gang, and he decided to give his best friend, Laverne, a call. He let the phone ring 8 times, but an answer never came. So he sat there alone, confused, and extremely disappointed.  
  
Lenny Kosnowski hadn't seen or heard from his friends since he mysteriously disappeared. He just wanted to surprise them all by getting a better education and actually amounting to something other than Squiggy's best friend. But throughout his trip, he found himself constantly thinking of Laverne, and he hoped that now she would finally be able to accept him and maybe even a proposal of marriage, although he dared not to get too hopeful. On his journey, he had stopped in Milwaukee, where he found his childhood home occupied. There was a little, old woman gardening outside, and he decided to introduce himself. When the woman turned around, they locked eyes, and immediately, Lenny realized that she was his mother. She asked him to stay with her for awhile, and he did. They talked and talked until Lenny decided he needed to get on with his journey again. Three day after he left, he wired his mother, and that same night, he got a reply saying his mother had passed away the night before. Lenny grieved to himself, but just a little, after all, he didn't really know her that well.  
  
"Could this day get any worse? Surely not.", Laverne DeFazio wondered as she walked through her apartment. Little did she know, she had thought way too soon. She had just lost her job, and was flat broke. She went upstairs to take a nap when the phone rang. She ignored it for she decided she would rather not talk to anybody right then. It rang 8 times and then it stopped, so she decided if it rang again she would answer it. It did. The phone rang, and she answered it in a fit of fury. It was Alicia, the newly hired hand of her father's restaurant, and she was crying. She explained to Laverne that her father had suffered from a stroke and the doctors weren't sure as to whether he would make it or not. Laverne lost it, and fled to the hospital. When she got there, she wished desperately for someone to console her, so she decided to give Shirley a call. She called and someone who picked up the phone and told Laverne that Shirley could not come to the phone at the moment due to grief, so she left a message. Gosh, how she desperately wanted someone to take her into their arms and hold her. Even Lenny would've sufficed. But she just sat in the waiting room, now not only worried about her Pop, but Shirl too.   
  
"Oh my God! This couldn't have happened!", exclaimed Shirley Feeney, after her friend, Maureen, had told her that her husband and son were in a plane wreck earlier that afternoon. They had been coming home from a trip to see Walter's sister, when the plane ran into an electrical storm, and crashed. Neither had survived. It was strange though, true, she was extremely upset about the loss of her child, but for some reason Walter's death didn't affect her like it should have. Shirley went to the bedroom that her and Walter had shared, and cried for hours. At one point, she vaguely recalled Maureen coming in and telling her that Laverne had called, but she figured it was just a dream, although, she wished for Laverne or Carmine or even Lenny or Squiggy desperately right then. She made up her mind that after the funeral, she would head back to California again to stay with Laverne for a while. Maybe even Carmine could come visit too. This brightened her up a little, and she went about the day preparing for the funeral set for Thursday.   
  
Of the four, Laverne was the only one that received some good news. Her father would be okay after a few months of intensive therapy and bed rest, and she would have to take over Cowboy Bill's until then. She got home that later that night, and went straight to the phone to call Shirley. Shirley answered the phone herself, and they exchanged their losses of the day. Shirley told Laverne that after the funeral, she was coming back to California to start over, fresh and new because it worked once, so she figured it could work again. Laverne was a lot happier after their conversation, and when she laid the phone down on the receiver, it rang again. But, nothing could have prepared her to hear Lenny's voice over the phone. Thrilled to hear from him again, she suddenly realized that secretly over the past 3 months, she had really grown fond of Lenny and missed him desperately. They reminisced and caught each other up on their lives. Lenny then informed her that he would be coming back to California in less than two weeks as a college educated man. Laverne promised him that they would have dinner, just the two of them, after he got back.  
  
Shirley was back to her hopeful self after the funeral on Thursday, she had grieved so much, and was looking forward to being with her friends on Saturday. When she got back to her house, the phone rang. It was Carmine. She recollected her thoughts, and realized that her and Carmine could now be together at last. She knew she wanted that, because shortly after her marriage had started, she began longing for his touch, and even secretly wishing that the child she carried was his and not Walter's. She loved him truly, and was thrilled to hear his voice. She told him of what had happened, and she heard him let out a sigh – of relief. They talked of old times and how they missed each other, and Shirley told Carmine that she was headed back to California on Saturday, with a flight layover in New York. He told her that he thought that was great, and that he would try to get on the same flight, but if not, he would just see her at Laverne's apartment soon afterwards.   
At the end of the conversation, Carmine got really quiet and Shirley asked, "What's on your mind? You're being awfully quiet." So Carmine replied, "Well, angelface, I don't know what you're going to think of me, or whether this is right or wrong, but I have to say that I love you still, even though you're a new widow. I know you probably think I'm a cad, but I do love you more than anything. I loved you even though you were married." Shirley sat there for a second, and gleefully replied, "Oh, Carmine, I loved you too this whole time, even though I was married. I realized how much I wanted to be with you after I got married. I know that probably sounds awful, but I love you too." They shared a laugh, and decided that it was time that they gave their relationship a second chance.  



	2. Old Flames And a New Romance

The next Saturday, Shirley flew back into the states with her two-story house in England up for sale or rent. She couldn't believe she was so nervous about seeing Carmine again, but then again, she couldn't believe that they were to be reunited the right way. She was so excited when her plane landed early, especially since now the two would have time to go grab a bite to eat or something. Carmine was standing by the door to the plane with a dozen sterling roses, and dressed in his best suit. Shirley got off the plane and ran straight into his arms. She was dressed in a simple, black, elegant dress accented with silver jewelry. She was very tan, and looked a lot more womanly than she used to, due to childbirth of course. Their eyes locked as she pulled away from his grasp. Her twinkling blue eyes and his deep brown eyes each seemed to be after the same thing – each other. Carmine pulled her into a long passionate kiss and whispered ever-so-softly in her ear, "I won't ever let you go again, angelface." Shirley pulled away and grinned, but there was a tear rolling down her flushed cheek. The two connected in a way they had never experienced before, and they knew that they were meant to be together.  
  
Laverne was waiting rather impatiently for Shirley to get home that day. Shirley had told her not to pick her up at the airport, but to wait at home, and they would head to the Brown Derby as soon as she arrived. Laverne had already cleaned the house from top to bottom, bought groceries, taken a shower, and even watered the lawn. Rhonda had come over to keep her company while she did most of this. Laverne thought about how although she was annoying as heck, Rhonda had actually become one of Laverne's good friends over the past months after Shirley's departure. She was so excited about seeing her best friend again though, and that put everything else she was thinking to shame. When Shirley did finally arrive, she jumped on her, literally, knocking her down. She was so glad that Shirl was there that she didn't even notice Carmine helping unload the taxi or the roses that Shirley carried in her arms along with Boo-boo Kitty.   
  
Shirley was impressed that Laverne was actually keeping the old apartment kept and tidy. She sat Boo-boo Kitty down on the couch, and walked with Laverne upstairs to the bedroom. Shirley saw that the two beds were put back in their separate places, and she gasped. Laverne immediately thought something was wrong, and asked if she was okay. Shirley had had an epiphany that she had overlooked telling Laverne a few tiny details about this trip. She meekly looked at her best friend and said, "Vernie, didn't I tell you?"   
Laverne replied, "Tell me what?"  
Shirley gasped and said, "Oh, dear, well, geez, I feel stupid, how could I have forgotten to mention this?"  
"What didn't you mention?"  
"That I'm not staying here with you."  
"WHAT????"  
"Well, you see, Carmine's here with me, did you know that?"  
"No, but what does that have to do with anything?"  
"Ok, as bad as this sounds, especially since Walter and the baby just died, Carmine and I have decided to give our relationship another go. But this time, we're moving in together. We have reservations at a hotel, and tomorrow we're starting our house hunt."  
"Oh, ok, you had me worried there for a minute, Shirl. But, I know you and Carmine will be happy, so now that that's straightened out, let's go eat. I'm starved. Oh yeah, by the way, Lenny's coming back in about a week."  
"Really? Wow, I haven't heard from him since I moved. It'll be good to see him again."  
And with a simper on her face, Laverne replied, "Oh it will definitely be nice to see him again."  
  
Carmine, Shirley, and Laverne ate at the Brown Derby that evening, and they kept the conversation light and airy rather than focusing on their misfortunes. Laverne couldn't help but feel like the third wheel though. She heard Shirl gasp and saw her point. Fabian had come into the restaurant. He walked by their table and ended up at a table not too far from them. He sat down and looked in their direction and recognized the girls immediately, so he headed over to see his two biggest fans ever. The girls invited him to sit down, and he did so willingly. As they talked, Shirley realized that Fabian was just a regular guy, who obviously had his eye on Laverne, and the bad part was that Laverne obviously knew it as well. Laverne's thoughts kept turning to Lenny, but she pushed him quickly out of her mind when Fabian invited her to go to dinner with him alone in a week. She immediately accepted. She and Fabian talked for hours in the restaurant, and they hardly noticed when Shirley and Carmine got up and left.   
  
Carmine and Shirley were anxious to get out of the restaurant that evening and spend some quality, romantic time together for the first time in a long time. It was a beautiful evening. The sun was setting, and it was warm outside. Neither of them was used to that weather nowadays, so it was taken as a welcome change. They couldn't imagine a nicer night to rekindle their romance, so they headed to the hotel for the night. Both were a tad bit apprehensive when they finally reached the Plaza Inn, the hotel in which they were staying. Carmine asked Shirley to stay downstairs in the lobby while he made sure everything was perfect in their room, and she willingly did so, eagerly anticipating what was to come. Carmine was gone for about 15 minutes, when he returned with a blindfold. He asked Shirl to wear it until he told her she could take it off. He led her to the elevator, down the hallway, and through a door. He kissed her gently on the cheek, led her to the middle of the room, and told her to take the blindfold off. When she did, nothing could've prepared her for what was in that room. There were no lights, but there were over 200 candles illuminating the room. Six dozen roses were in baskets all over the place. Then she noticed a card on the bed, and she walked over to read it. It just simply stated, "I love you, I always have, and I want us to be together forever. Will you marry me, Angelface?" Shirley started crying tears of happiness, and Carmine got down on his knee, and pulled out a simple gold band. He explained that he went broke paying for this room and decorations in it, and that he would buy a diamond one later. She looked at him, and just said, "Yes!" That was all, but it was more than enough. Carmine took her into his arms, and kissed her passionately.  
(Note to the reader, they did not have sex, they're going to wait a little longer.)  
  
Laverne floated to her apartment that evening, thrilled that she was now officially dating a real celebrity. Her dreaming had finally paid off, but there was one problem, she didn't know what on earth she was going to do about the Lenny situation. She thought she had loved him, but now that was questionable. She never had someone treat her as good as Fabian had, in her whole life, than she had been throughout dinner. And as quirky as it was, that just seemed to click, but she didn't want to have to explain this to Lenny. Laverne didn't sleep much that night, for she worried that she was more than likely going to have to break one of her best friend's hearts, and she didn't want to, but it was going to be necessary. She finally fell asleep to one of Fabian's records, and dreamed of being in his arms again.  
  
  
  



End file.
